It’s amazing what a small media stunt can do for someone’s career. PR is effective in the sense that all a person or product needs is one good piece of publicity to generate buzz and gossip. Whether said stunt is accidental or on purpose, some exposure (if done properly) can certainly go a long way.
Paris Whitney Hilton, a.k.a. a wealthy heiress is famous for literally just that—being famous. Her iconic chihuahua Tinkerbell, long blonde hair, pink Bentley, and snobby attitude certainly cranked up the level on the “spoiled rich girl” stereotype. She’s a celebrity not through talent or work, but through inherited wealth and lifestyle. Oh, and a sex tape. You can’t forget that sex tape.
Her diamond-studded ticket to instant stardom was thanks to 1 Night in Paris (2004), an amateur home video featuring herself and her then-boyfriend Rick Salomon. The leaked footage went viral overnight and she was everywhere—billboards, magazines, gossip sites, social media, memes, conversations, tv show parodies… the list goes on! At the time there wasn’t a celebrity or talk show host that didn’t reference the socialite. She quickly became an “It girl” media sensation.
After the tape, she was mostly known for her ridiculous reality shows: The Simple Life (2003-2007) with her co-star and friend Nicole Richie, Paris Hilton’s My New BFF (2008), Paris Hilton’s British Beat Friend (2009), Paris Hilton’s Dubai BFF (2009), and The World According to Paris (2011).
Paris Hilton (right) and Nicole Richie (left) on The Simple Life.
The Simple Life continued to run for five straight seasons, and it quickly became her most well-known television appearance. This reality show focused on the two of them doing manual low-paying jobs, from farm work to summer camp councillors and, of course, serving in fast food restaurants.
Yet despite all her fame and fortune, she still had a brief run-in with law enforcement. Between filming seasons of The Simple Life, she was sentenced to 45 days in jail for violating the terms of her probation by an alcohol-related reckless driving case. That didn’t stop her from her other ventures, however. Between the court hearings and the television appearances, there was more than enough exposure for the woman to dabble in more than simple reality shows.
Paris was able to land numerous acting gigs, some of her films being House of Wax (2005), Bottoms Up (2006), and The Hottie and the Nottie (2008). Here’s a spoiler alert: she more or less plays herself in these movies, a rich socialite who’s ignorant about the world outside her bubble.
The celebutante dabbled in music as well, with her not-so-great album Paris (2006), and a flourishing DJ career (2012).
Believe it or not, she was there at the Sao Paulo music festival. Naturally, you can tell how well that went. On the other hand, she got signed onto a music label.
And her success doesn’t end there. Paris wrote a book that became a New York Times best-seller, she’s released various fashion lines for shoes/clothes/perfume/pet accessories, and she’s starred in numerous commercials to endorse products. According to Forbes, the socialite has 45 Paris Hilton stores in more than 40 countries, Variety named her its ‘Billion Dollar Entrepreneur’ in 2011 and her fragrance collection is fast approaching a $2 billion industry.
Paris Hilton, the author, with her book Confessions of an Heiress (2004).
The moral of today’s story? In today’s world anyone can be anything. All you need is one good sex tape.
Sources:
http://www.businessinsider.com/10-celebrity-pr-twitter-comebacks?op=1
http://www.celebritycarsblog.com/celebrity/paris-hilton/
Footprint 
Loved this post- crazy that Paris Hilton is a household name yet has no talent! Or is the capitalization on her publicity a talent in itself?
all the best!
Esther
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